Taunton Mayor Thomas Hoye Jr. took a trip to Washington, D.C., last week to speak with federal legislators, along with U.S. government officials, about solutions to the community’s opiate abuse epidemic and about the proposed tribal resort casino in the city.

In addition to that, Hoye said he also reached out tothe U.S. lawmakers from Massachusetts to discuss a grant that could increase the size of the city’s police force and to talk about $80 million in federally mandated improvements that Taunton has been asked to make to its wastewater treatment plant.

“The entire delegation was extremely gracious and engaged, and I appreciate their attention to these extremely important issues within our community,” said Hoye, after talking with U.S. politicians from Massachusetts. “Opiate abuse in particular has plagued this area, and I am pleased the delegation has pledged to work in tandem with state and local leaders to offer tangible solutions to this problem.”

Hoye said he is optimistic that the federal government will help make a difference on the opiate abuse issue.

“I think they will,” he said. “It’s not a problem just affecting Massachusetts. Interestingly enough, when I got off the plane and got into a cab, the first story on the radio was about a heroin overdose and the use of Narcan (naloxone) and bringing a person back. This is a problem that affects many parts of the country. Our delegation is well-aware of it … and knows that treatment needs to be funded. In collaboration between state, federal and local government, we will make things happen.”

Hoye said he emphasized Taunton’s need to hire additional public safety personnel using federal Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant funding through the U.S. Department of Justice. Taunton currently has just over 100 police officers, and Hoye said he hopes to add five to 10 more positions in the city’s police department.

“We need more enforcement,” said Hoye, after returning from the trip. “Not just with opiate abuse, but in all aspects of the city, whether traffic, street crimes, you name it. We simply need more bodies on the streets. We need to increase our sector coverage. It’s important to point out the police are up against it. Their numbers are low. And you have to have concern about that.”

Hoye said he met with Washburn and his staff to discuss the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s efforts to take land into trust at the Liberty and Union Industrial Park off Route 140 near the Silver City Galleria Mall. The Mashpee tribe needs Department of Interior approval for the Bureau of Indian Affairs to officially place the land into trust as an Indian reservation, before it can embark on its plans to build a $500 million resort-casino in the city, although detractors say that a 2009 Supreme Court ruling will prohibit the tribe from doing so.

Hoye said Washburn indicated the Bureau of Indian Affairs is presently formulating the final environmental impact statement and expects to publish its findings in the next several months.

“They let us know the process is moving forward, although slowly,” Hoye said after returning from his trip. “But they also said this process is moving much more rapidly than other tribes in recent history. The tribe is on track. …They essentially let us know they are working on it and it is a priority for them. … They would like to see the Mashpees successful. Hopefully, they will make a final determination in the near future on land in trust.”

Hoye noted that this was his first visit to Washington, D.C., as Taunton’s top city leader.

“The visit to D.C was well worth it,” he said. “It’s something as the Mayor, that I need to do on a semi-regular basis. … We need to stay engaged with our federal counterparts.”

Hoye also said that another important topic of conversation on his trip was Taunton’s wastewater treatment facility. Hoye said his administration has been informed that the treatment plant is the subject of federally mandated upgrades that will cost $80 million.

“This would be an extremely expensive proposition to the city and sewer ratepayers, and our delegation has vowed to work with us on this issue,” Hoye said.

Hoye said that, in light of Taunton recently performing upgrades to its wastewater treatment plant, along with similar actions by Brockton and Fall River, he is urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to take new sampling data related to the mandated upgrades, as opposed to data 10 years old being considered.